I know I posted this bike on the last page but I have finally finished making the build more appropriate for all mountain use, got an 08 Fox Talas RLC fork, Spinergy Xyclone Enduro Wheels, and an Easton Vice AM Stem. Bike rides amazing and feels good in the mud (we finally have a little mud around D.C.) Also added the orange Acid pedals, giving clipless a try for AM use, I use eggbeaters on my XC bikes, this is my first AM bike. Any suggestions or opinions are greatly appreciated. Please note the seatpost is in "getting to the trail" mode. One thing I am considering is a Speedball R or Gravity dropper seatpost.

slick ellsworth. i'm in bmore...where do you ride around dc? i go to patapsco for the most part, but always looking for fun new places to ride in the area.

I just recently bought this frame, mainly because I got a good price and because it's about 1 lb lighter than the Surly Instigator I've ridden up until now.
What kind of rides would you say that the Bakka is best suited for?

I guess I'll find out for myself during this winter, but it might be nice to have some input from a fellow Bakka-er, too.

Here's my Allmountain hardtail entry into this fun. Its a 2007 Mountain Cycle Rumble that i build from scratch. I've had a lot of different setups on this bike and this is bye far the most fun you can have with your close on. It climbs like a billy goat and motors over anything. Build is full XT drivetrain, Hayes nine brakes and Marzocchi Drop off triple fork. Enjoy!!!

Here's my Allmountain hardtail entry into this fun. Its a 2007 Mountain Cycle Rumble that i build from scratch. I've had a lot of different setups on this bike and this is bye far the most fun you can have with your close on. It climbs like a billy goat and motors over anything. Build is full XT drivetrain, Hayes nine brakes and Marzocchi Drop off triple fork. Enjoy!!!

My cove sanchez. Feels great on the trails despite being a heavy dj bike.

looks sharp, possible to get better pics?
just noticed, 24"r + 26"f?
or is it just me....

Originally Posted by lv4sndz

Here's my Allmountain hardtail entry into this fun. Its a 2007 Mountain Cycle Rumble that i build from scratch. I've had a lot of different setups on this bike and this is bye far the most fun you can have with your close on. It climbs like a billy goat and motors over anything. Build is full XT drivetrain, Hayes nine brakes and Marzocchi Drop off triple fork. Enjoy!!!

'05 rockhopper pro disc - pretty much stock But a blast to ride as is.

Plans are upgrading both shifters and derailleurs to sram x-9. Hydro brakes, not sure which ones yet. Then a fork, one with adjustable height, external rebound adj., compression/preload dampening, and lockout. Looking at rockshox for now.

The Van 32 is 140mm whether is RLC or not. It would be a very nice match with the Viento as an agrressive trail/xc bike. Since a Van can bare a little more than that, the Vagrant is also a nice option and better if you wanna try also some tricks and maneuvers.

ah yes...
RLC = 32...
got it mixed up with the 36, which i've been doing not but thinking of....
at almost 700gm lighter then what i have now (55R), its exactly what i want...
though i can't fault the 55R which rolls over anything i have guts to try...

Unfair advantage

This is my Dekerf Implant in one of its many guises. This frame has seen forks from rigid up to 7", 24" and 26" wheels, freeride burly parts and XC light parts and mixtures of all the above. It is always fun to ride and never holds me back from trying anything.

This is my Dekerf Implant in one of its many guises. This frame has seen forks from rigid up to 7", 24" and 26" wheels, freeride burly parts and XC light parts and mixtures of all the above. It is always fun to ride and never holds me back from trying anything.

You should see my feet

Too much free time and a bunch of extra parts laying around means new hardtail for me!!! So I decided to take a chance with a Sette Shadow frame and see what I could build up. I already had the Reba fork, drivetrain and wheelset, so all I really had to buy was the frame, brakes and seat/seatpost.

Ride Summary: my last three bikes have all been full suspension so its been a while since I have ridden a hardtail offroad. I was very pleasantly surprised, it rode solid and much more comfortable than I was expecting (with help from the Reba & SpeedV seat). I am still getting use to the tighter geometry and will play around with stem lengths but this will definitely be a fun play bike. Also, I normally only ride clipless so this was my first time on modern day flats and I really liked them, may have to experiment using them on my Heckler. Enough rambling, here are some pics.

Too much free time and a bunch of extra parts laying around means new hardtail for me!!! So I decided to take a chance with a Sette Shadow frame and see what I could build up. I already had the Reba fork, drivetrain and wheelset, so all I really had to buy was the frame, brakes and seat/seatpost.

Ride Summary: my last three bikes have all been full suspension so its been a while since I have ridden a hardtail offroad. I was very pleasantly surprised, it rode solid and much more comfortable than I was expecting (with help from the Reba & SpeedV seat). I am still getting use to the tighter geometry and will play around with stem lengths but this will definitely be a fun play bike. Also, I normally only ride clipless so this was my first time on modern day flats and I really liked them, may have to experiment using them on my Heckler. Enough rambling, here are some pics.

VERY NICE Those rebas look like they have alot of travel...... how did you get 115mm? is it standard?

VERY NICE Those rebas look like they have alot of travel...... how did you get 115mm? is it standard?

Its an 05' Reba Race that came stock with 115mm travel. It also has spacers to reduce to 100 or 85mm. I actually used it on my Heckler for awhile and it rode quite nice for mild singletrack. Not sure if the current Reba's can be adjusted to 115mm.

that's an interesting looking ride mate! looks very clean- do you ride it off road?

what does it weigh?

yeah thats the cleanest its looked in while. tires, seat/post and fork are pretty new though
came in on my home scale around 26.5 lbs (w/ritchey v4 pedals)

the fork is a noleen crosslink ELT I got off ebay, new old stock. very different feel than the judy it replaced but I'm diggin it so far, much lighter too. wish it had more travel, but not bad for xc riding

I have...it was a blast

I rode the Porcupine Rim a couple of years ago from the Lasal Mountain loop road to the river (before they made the top part officially off-limits) on my Dialled Bikes Prince Albert. Of course, the big drops (especially toward the bottom) weren't possible for me, but I'm not sure I have the skills to do them on a fully, either. I did break my seat bolt about a mile from the bottom, so I had to ride w/o a saddle the last little way. My hardtail is built up quite beefy, so it could take the abuse, but it was quite a workout for me. The fact that I'm fat and out of shape could have something to do with that, however!

Originally Posted by 2_Tires

Has anyone done any riding in Moab, Utah on a hard tail? How was it? I am especially interested in knowing about riding Porcupine Rim on a hard tail.

Snapped seat bolt? Who needs a seat anyway!? Hahaha ... alright, I decided that I am going to shred the porcupine on my hardtail and see what happens. I'll pack my hydra-pak with spare parts, strap on some armour and just hit it. Prolly won't hit the big drops but who knows... Wish me luck bro.

67 degree head angle, but running a bit more sag than with the Pike Air, so really about 67.5 when actually on the bike. Feels good so far. Had a few rides, then put the Pike back on for a bit while waiting for the 185mm post mount adapter for the front brake.

All good now. Waiting on the Manitou topcap tool so I can start screwing around with the internals a bit.

Hey Scrublover, why the switch from the Pike to the Nixon? Strictly for the extra 20mm?

Sweet rig. Pics of your first Peyto are what inspired me to get my Sovereign. Thanks for posting!

Ant

picked up one of the last 20mm nixons (apparantly) on sale cheap, just to try it out. liking it so far. not getting rid of the pike at all though. will swap back and forth a bit until one becomes the clear winner. so far the pike is slightly ahead.

Re: Moab

Originally Posted by 2_Tires

Snapped seat bolt? Who needs a seat anyway!? Hahaha ... alright, I decided that I am going to shred the porcupine on my hardtail and see what happens. I'll pack my hydra-pak with spare parts, strap on some armour and just hit it. Prolly won't hit the big drops but who knows... Wish me luck bro.

Funny you should say that because I broke my seat and seatpost on the 'Diving Board' on Porcupine Rim. I landed fine but my ass just hit the seat too hard. I was on a Stumpjump FSR.
A hardtail will probably be pretty rattling depending on your speed, but do-able. Also, I suggest going further up to at least Hazard County. This is where we started and it was a blast. Snowing at the top and in the 80's at the bottom

Snapped seat bolt? Who needs a seat anyway!? Hahaha ... alright, I decided that I am going to shred the porcupine on my hardtail and see what happens. I'll pack my hydra-pak with spare parts, strap on some armour and just hit it. Prolly won't hit the big drops but who knows... Wish me luck bro.

faaaat tires. fat as you can run. that make the long, lumpy sections more comfy. i've done it several times on a hardtail. not as fast on some stuff as a good fully, but that doesn't mean it isn't fun!

respectfully yours from Ukraine

faaaat tires. fat as you can run. that make the long, lumpy sections more comfy. i've done it several times on a hardtail. not as fast on some stuff as a good fully, but that doesn't mean it isn't fun!

What psi do you think I should run my tires at? I'm thinking running them at around 35psi to avoid a bouncy wheel but then I risk getting pinch flats. But then again at a high psi I risk tearing my side wall so ... what do you suggest?

What psi do you think I should run my tires at? I'm thinking running them at around 35psi to avoid a bouncy wheel but then I risk getting pinch flats. But then again at a high psi I risk tearing my side wall so ... what do you suggest?

depends on the tire. on that stuff, with a hardtail, if you want to hit stuff hard and fast... at least a 2.5" dh tire. psi? 25-35 just depending on what things feel like to you and the tire. pinch? go up a few psi.

My new '08 STP 0, I'll be doing XC / AM / DH type riding with it, argh probably just XC with a bit of mucking around most of the time depending on how much time I get to ride & if I hook up with others. There is a local DH course not too far away which I will have to check out (just moved house big time). Had a bit of time off the bike so need to work up the fitness and the confidence again & get back into it.

I've changed a few things from stock (it's the Aussie model) so that it suits my riding better and otherwise purely out of personal preference:

I'm yet to get a bashie (bash ring sandwich probably) or a Straitline Chain Guide once they come out, not a real fan of the E.Thirteen chain guides (it came with the STS)

I'm yet to head out for a decent ride, hopefully next week. It felt very different & "strange" compared to the Giant Alias I've been riding, but with the customized spec I feel right at home after a few short rides around, definitely like the geo better than the Alias now that I've become more accustomed to it
Probably should get a set back seat post and replace the trigger shifter with a twist one. Perrrrrrfect.

That's always a hard question...

...because it depends on so many factors. I'm a big fat slob, so I ran mine pretty high. I used WTB Weirwolfs @ 38 psi in the rear, and 36 psi in the front. My Prince Albert won't accept anything bigger than that in the rear. Fortunately, I didn't have any pinch flats or problems with cuts or tears. I did shred up a few knobs, but that's pretty common with the Weirwolf tires.

I'm waiting on delivery of my new hardtail...a Dialled Bikes Alpine. It will accept a fatter tire, bigger rotors, and a longer fork, so I'm going to be taking it to Moab and riding the Whole Enchilada as soon as the snow melts...I'll let you know how it goes, providing I survive!!

Originally Posted by 2_Tires

What psi do you think I should run my tires at? I'm thinking running them at around 35psi to avoid a bouncy wheel but then I risk getting pinch flats. But then again at a high psi I risk tearing my side wall so ... what do you suggest?

That Giant looks great - you can get full leg extension for climbing etc. etc. with it? If so, awesome.

Not sure if you were referring to me or someone else. I'll answer anyway -

The thompson was cut down to about 320mm and it's only just adequate for proper leg extension with 100mm left in the seat tube as required. I did my research & knew that a standard 350mm post would be fine, just a shame the bike came with a 250mm post which is not what the specs stated
I'll know after a good ride or two if I need to go to a set back post (saddle is quite a way back at the moment), and if so then probably look into a syncros derived or something.

Built up for everything (except tyres. they're currently for street/DJ). Manoeuvrable, fast, light. Everything I want in a bike. Fork with lockout so it's a bit more versatile. There is no way I'll be able to whip or barspin anytime soon so it's staying like that.

Waiting for larger, grippier tyres for DH/AM.

Don't need 20mm. I haven't stumbled upon the 'need' yet.

And has anyone modded the upper guide plate of an NS-1 to box in the chain? If this was possible, a bashguard would be superfluous (there's one integrated into the guide plate anyway)

I really like the white, the blue looks pretty good, but I'm more of a black / white / silver - pretty plain sort of person. My husband said the STP in blue looked like a girls bike when we picked it up, and that's fine with me!

Reckon I will have to get a set back seat post. I think a lot of people like myself are realizing how versatile these bikes are, or people looking to get something beyond the xc bike but not a dually. If I could pick any colour it would probably be silver or black though, still the blue looks good as does the white - I really liked the white STP pro but the price and components on the 0 were more to my liking so it's what I got.

They are versatile, but get a 400mm post, depending on your height. Mine @ full extension (350mm) is still too short. Thankfully the whole thing fits into the frame and doesn't stop halfway down. I've got an XC bike though, so this is for fun.
My boss stripped one down for parts (chainguide, wheels, not forks.....anyone want pikes?) and asked if I wanted a frame. I had a bunch of parts, so I said yeah. They are worth more to me than their dollar value.

You should go for the black STP2 frame. It, with the green highlight, rivals the pro for the best look.

You must be the one selling the Pikes on Farkin? I did see a set there, ah well too late as I brought mine before I brought the bike - so now trying to sell the Argyles to recoup most of the money.
I can use my husbands Alias for XC, but I doubt I will when I've got the STP and they both weigh about the same anyway (around 13kg or a bit less maybe).

I'll stick with my blue frame for now, it's shiny & new, maybe take it down to raw Al once it gets enough scratches on it.

Right after taking this some strange dude came out of the woods with 1/2 of a bike frame in one hand and a giant tree branch in another declaring " I was here when that tree fell down!!" That was kinda freaky.